Who Is It?
by KatFenn
Summary: Caitlin disappears under mysterious circumstances. Who or what could they want?
1. Chapter 1

**Who is it? **

These characters are not mine – I have just borrowed them! They are the property of Bellisario or Universal or whoever…

Chapter 1 

Caitlin O'Shannessy stretched and yawned. "Goodness, is it Monday already?" The weekend had gone by so quickly. Between cleaning her tiny apartment, and shopping for her big dinner party, time had just flown.

"_Shoot, there goes the danged doorbell!"_

Quickly grabbing her dressing gown, she swung her feet out of bed. Her bedside clock said 6.57am.

"Who is it?"

"Delivery for Ms O'Shannessy!"

Tying her dressing gown firmly around her waist, she headed for the door.

As she opened the door a large brown box filled three quarters of her line of sight. Caitlin sighed. "Where do I sign?"

"Clipboard in my right hand ma'am. Would you like me to bring this in for you?"

"_Sure saves me carrying the darned thing_. Yes please, come through."

Caitlin stepped aside to let the delivery man in. The next thing she knew, the box had slammed into her, pushing her to the floor. A cloth covered her mouth and nose. "What the…" said Caitlin, as she passed out.

"Dom…I don't see Caitlin's car anywhere. Do you?" said Stringfellow Hawke, as the graceful Jet Ranger landed in front of the Santini Air hangar.

"That's really strange, String, she's usually here to welcome us. Are we really early or something?"

"Well, my watch says 8.57am. Let's go in and put the coffee on, and see if she's left us a note or a message or something. It's very unlike her not to be here on a Monday morning!"

Dom and String look around the hangar and the offices. No sign of Caitlin, or that anything had been touched since they had all left on Friday afternoon for supper at String's cabin.

"Any chance she might have overslept?"

"In the three years she's worked here, has she EVER overslept? Something doesn't feel quite right Dom. I'm calling her apartment."

String busied himself with the telephone. Dom started the coffee machine and went to the schedule board to see what he had planned for the three of them that day.

"No answer at her apartment, Dom. No notes taped to the door or anything?"

"Nothing, String. Hey, we have to get the Steerman ready for the stunt shoot tomorrow, and Caitlin had two flying lessons scheduled, one this morning, one for this afternoon. So you gonna take her student or am I?"

String arched his eyebrow as he turned to look at Dom. "Are you kidding me Dom – I'd rather make you coffee, rub your feet AND clean the Jet Ranger rather than take a student up! The way I'm feeling I might just have him for breakfast."

Throwing his hands up in a classic I-give-up gesture and rolling his eyes, Dom agreed. "Alright String, you can make a start on the Steerman and I'll sort out the student. But only if you buy me lunch And you can do the feet rubbing later."

Scowling, String stalked off to his locker to change into overalls. Yup, it was going to be THAT sort of day.

String worked methodically on the Steerman. Carefully removing various parts of the propeller engine and cleaning them, then replacing them, he couldn't help but let his mind wander. The phone rang twice while Dom was with the student, but both calls were advertising gimmicks. He was starting to worry about Caitlin. It really wasn't like her to disappear just like that. And he knew that she was planning a fancy dinner party to celebrate Dom's birthday on Wednesday. Wiping his hands free of the worst of the oil and grime, he walked to the phone and picked it up. Dialing Michael's number at Knightsbridge, he waited.

"Michael please, Marella. It's urgent."

"Hawke…since when do you say please? You don't sound alright. Everything OK?"

"No, Marella, Caitlin seems to have disappeared. I can feel that something's not right. Maybe Michael can help."

"Hang on, Hawke, I'm putting you straight through."

"Hawke? What's this I hear about Caitlin disappearing?"

"Michael, I don't know. I've got a bad feeling about this. She was supposed to be here this morning, she had a flying lesson and I know how she feels about letting us down with things like that. No answer at her apartment, and her car's not here either. I don't know where to start!"

"Alright Hawke, this is what we do. I'll get Marella to check any police files and call round the police stations, to see if anyone with her description has been picked up. I'll also get her to run a check on the hospitals. I'll meet you at her apartment in 15 minutes. Let's see what we can find."

"Thanks, Michael. I'm jumping on my bike right now."

String slammed down the phone, glad of a plan of action. Racing to strip off his oily overalls, he grabbed his jacket from his locker and felt for his motorbike keys in the pocket. He grabbed a pistol from the strongbox in the back office and tucked it into the waistband of his jeans. Stopping only to leave a brief note for Dom next to the phone, he jumped on his bike and zoomed off in the direction of Caitlin's apartment.

Getting off his bike, he put the stand down. Michael was there waiting, trying to look inconspicuous in his normal white three-piece suit, behind a convenient tree. Drawing his pistol, he barked, "Are you coming?"

In answer, Michael drew his own gun and followed him. The pair raced up the stairs towards Caitlin's apartment.

Nodding at Michael, String mouthed the words "On three. One, two, three!" as he planted his foot squarely above the door handle of Caitlin's front door. The door gave way with a crash.

"Caitlin?"

An empty apartment greeted him. "Check the rooms, Michael." String knelt down to examine the signs of a scuffle by the front door. There were no bloodstains, but the entryway table had been overturned, and the lamp that usually lay on it was in pieces on the ground. Turning his attention to the front door, he saw no signs of forced entry.

"Rooms are clear, Hawke. She's not here."

String walked through into Caitlin's tiny bedroom. The bed had been slept in, but not made. He checked through her clothes for her favourite jacket – it was still hanging on its hook behind the bedroom door. He looked outside towards her parking lot. Her burgundy Toyota was parked in its usual spot. "_Where the hell is she_?"


	2. Chapter 2

**Who is it? **

These characters are not mine – I have just borrowed them! They are the property of Bellisario or Universal or whoever…

Chapter 2

After making sure that there were no other clues, both men left Caitlin's apartment.

"Let me check in with Marella, see if she's come up with anything."

"Good idea, Michael." The two men walked together towards Michael's limo, parked two blocks away. String tried his best to match Michael's limping stride without showing too much impatience, but Michael could tell he was champing at the bit. Although he couldn't see String's steely blue eyes underneath the aviator shades he wore, he knew that they would be flashing in frustration.

Getting to the limo first, String jumped straight in and yanked the receiver towards him. Punching in Michael's office number, the phone had already started ringing as Michael sat in the limo. Pulling the receiver from String's hand, he said "Marella?" just as she picked up the phone. "Anything on Caitlin?"

"Nothing, Michael. The police don't have her, or any record of any disturbance of any kind within 3 blocks of her apartment between Friday night and this morning. No-one in the hospitals even vaguely answering her description."

"Thanks, Marella, keep an ear to the ground. Will keep you posted."

String snatched the receiver back from Michael and dialled the Santini Air number. "Dom? Anything from Cait yet?"

"Oh, hey String. No, nothing yet. Nothing your end, I take it?"

"No. I'm going to the Lady. Maybe she's there?"

"OK, String, come back to the hangar and we'll go out there together."

Turning to Michael, String nodded and said, "Thanks. I'll keep you posted – let me know if you hear anything?"

"Yeah, we'll keep looking. Put her through the database and see if anything comes up."

String got out of the limo and headed back to his motorbike. The gnawing feeling in his gut really didn't help at all. Jumping on, he put his head down and headed straight for Santini Air.

Getting off his bike, String sprinted towards the Jet Ranger. Dom had seen him pull up and started the rotors, impatient to get going. He jumped in quickly and pulled the headphones over his ears. Dom pulled back on the collective and got the helicopter in the air.

"You alright there String?"

"No, Dom, I'm not. I know she could be just avoiding us, God KNOWS WHY she is, but why would her car still be at her apartment? Where could she have gone knowing that she had a student this morning? That's really not like her at all, Dom. I've got a really bad feeling about this." "_And this better not be another ploy to get Airwolf_," he thought to himself, scowling. "C'mon Dom, let's move this donkey cart!"

"I'm going as fast as I can, String….this isn't the Lady, you know."

"Well, just get there already."

After 15 minutes of poking around the Lair, and checking that the Airwolf was undisturbed, both men came to the conclusion that Cait wasn't there, and hadn't been there since they last landed her the Monday before.

"Should we have a look at your cabin, String?"

"Yeah, why not. I don't see how she would have got there without a chopper, or her car…unless she was in the mood for a really long hike or swim round Eagle Lake?"

They hopped into the Jet Ranger and Dom quickly headed to String's cabin. Landing on the dock, Tet barked excitedly as Dom rolled his eyes. "Bloody hound!"

String ran quickly up the path to his front door. All was quiet. No smoke from his chimney, not a sound other than the usual bird calls. Pulling the front door open, String stuck his head inside to make sure that Cait was not in the cabin.

"So a big fat nothing, eh?" said Dom, as String climbed into the helicopter.

"No, nothing. Let's head back to the hangar – maybe she's left a message by now. Don't you have a student to take up in a couple of minutes?"

"Shoot, String, I almost forgot! You wouldn't want to do a friend a favour and take his student up wouldja?"

String looked at Dom. His eyebrow said it all.

Arriving back at the hangar, String took off at a run for the telephone. As he got to the entrance to the hangar, he skidded to a stop. In front of the entrance stood a large brown box. "Dom!" he yelled.

Dom came hurrying up. "Found something?"

String picked up the box and ripped it open. In it was a lock of Caitlin's red hair, with a folded note and a videotape.

"Read it, String!"

"I can't. It looks like a map. Guess we're going to have to hit the video machine. Or I will, at any rate – there's your student."

"Well, see what you can do. I'll be back in an hour. I sure hope Caitlin's OK."

"Sure thing, Dom."

String shut the doors to the hangar so he wouldn't be disturbed. He sat down in front of the video player in the back office and popped the tape in, praying that it would give them some clue as to Caitlin's whereabouts.

The television flickered to life. There was Caitlin, still in her dressing gown, hands tied behind her back. She was sitting on a chair in a dimly-lit room, with what sounded like a small waterfall going in the background. The room seemed to be filled with water up till her knees. She looked like she'd had a long night. "String…?" said the image. "Dom…?An old friend of ours is keeping me prisoner. He wants you to bring Airwolf to the coordinates marked on the map and then he'll let me go. He says that you have to come alone. And that you need to disarm the explosives in the doors. Please come quick, guys…I don't know how much longer I'll last". At that point the image faded and a new image came into view. "_John Bradford Horn….I'm going to kill him this time_!" thought String, clenching his jaw.

"Hello, Stringfellow Hawke. Remember me? Well your precious Caitlin isn't going to last long. The room will be completely filled with water in a matter of hours. Unless you hand Airwolf over to me, of course. Otherwise I'm afraid you will just have to find another redhead from Texas with cute freckles to befriend!" The image faded to blackness and the video stopped.

String looked at his watch. Dom wouldn't be back for at least another 15 minutes. Heading for the telephone, he called Michael at his office. "Michael? This is Hawke. We need a plan and we need to make it fast. John Bradford Horn's got Caitlin."

String was waiting for Dom, the rotors of the Jet Ranger already turning. Dom hopped out of the little Lear jet once he parked it in the hangar. Pressing the button that would close the hangar doors, he headed for the Jet Ranger as fast as his legs would take him. "I take it that the video told us where Cait was?"

"Yup. I'll fill you in. We gotta get the Lady and get going!" said String.

"Sheesh, String, what a choice! The Lady for Caitlin? This is bloody John Bradford Horn all over again. When are we going to be rid of this guy, String?"

"I swear, Dom, this is it this time. I've had it with playing his cat and mouse games. With all that water in that room I'm not sure how long Caitlin has. But I have a plan," said String, a glint coming into his steely blue eyes.

"This better be good, String. I'm in no mood to take a chance on losing EITHER woman today!" Dom harrumphed and settled grimly in his chair.


	3. Chapter 3

**Who is it? **

These characters are not mine – I have just borrowed them! They are the property of Bellisario or Universal or whoever…

Author's note: Thank you everyone for the very encouraging reviews!

Chapter 3

Michael crouched in the bushes. It felt strange to be wearing a camouflage jacket and pants instead of his customary immaculate 3-piece white suit. Hefting his pistol in his hand, he looked at the Zebra Squad leader, waiting for further instructions. He had fought hard to be allowed to come along and be part of the mission. He checked his watch. They had been waiting for the past hour. Hawke and Santini had been sitting in Airwolf a good mile and a half away, monitoring the terrain on their scanners. They had agreed to maintain radio silence unless someone spotted something. "_So much for no news is good news_," thought Michael.

"What now, sir?" whispered the Zebra Squad leader.

"Give me the radio," said Michael. Clicking the handset on, he radioed Airwolf. "Hawke? Nothing here. Anything on your screens?"

Before String could respond, an explosion sounded through the trees. Michael ducked his head under his arms, dropping the radio receiver.

"Michael? Michael!?" squawked the radio. "Are you alright?"

Picking up the dropped radio receiver, Michael scrabbled for the button. "Hawke? Yeah, we're all alright. But the explosion came from the trees. We're going to check it out. Sit tight. Run the scans and keep us posted."

"Will do, Michael. Hawke out."

"Over here, sir! We've got something!"

Michael limped as fast as his leg would allow him. As he got to the site of the explosion, purple smoke billowed in the air, making him cough. "What do you have?" he spluttered.

The Zebra Squad leader held out a box to Michael. Michael took it and ripped it open. "What the…?" In it was another note, and another lock of red hair. Picking up the radio receiver, he clicked it on. "Hawke? We've got another box with a note and a lock of red hair. Come pick me up and we'll have a look at it together."

"On our way, Michael. Hawke out."

Sitting in the computer room at the Firm's offices in Knightsbridge, Marella's fingers flew over the keyboard. Michael stood, looking over her right shoulder. He had the radio receiver held loosely in his right hand.

A burst of static came from the radio receiver. "Michael?"

"Hawke? What did you find?"

"Nothing. We got to the coordinates on the note and had a quick look round, then moved a mile and a half away and ran the scanners. Nothing…then another explosion, again with purple smoke, and another friggin' box!"

"And what was in the box, Hawke?"

"Another note, with coordinates, and another lock of hair. This is really getting to me, Michael. What the heck is John Bradford Horn playing at?"

"Sir, I think you should have a look at this." Marella gestured excitedly to the screen, catching Michael's attention. "Preliminary chromatography on the locks of hair show traces of gamma radiation. Also traces of a rare mineral – Tholium."

"Good work Marella. Look for old, abandoned mines or other sources of this mineral. Airwolf won't be able to pick up the mineral on her scanners, but we should be able to cross-reference those locations with radiation scans from Airwolf. "

"Already ahead of you, sir." Marella grinned silently to herself.

"Hawke? Marella's come up with something. We are going to send you coordinates to locations to check out. In the meantime, get some fuel and some coffee. Think you'll need it." Michael proceeded to fill String and Dom in on their latest discovery.

"Good work Michael!" chirped Dom from the back seat.


	4. Chapter 4

**Who is it? **

These characters are not mine – I have just borrowed them! They are the property of Bellisario or Universal or whoever…

Chapter 4

"C'mon, c'mon, get there already…" muttered String to himself.

"What's that, String?" said Dom from the Engineer's seat.

"Nothing."

"Nothing, my foot! I can feel you scowling from all the way in the back here. I know you're worried, String, so am I. But John Bradford Horn is not to be tangled with lightly! We gotta make sure we cross all our t's and dot our i's. So how's about going through the plan again?"

String and Dom talked through the plan again. Michael had sent them coordinates for an abandoned mine – the only one that triangulated with their radiation detection scan. They were going in on stealth mode, and setting the Lady down in a well-hidden clearing. Dom would stay with her, while String went in, on foot. Michael and the Zebra Squad were already hidden in the trees, bushes and rocky outcrops around the entrance to the abandoned mine. Waiting for String's radio signal, they would fight their way in, capture John Bradford Horn and subdue his security. String would then find Caitlin and get her out. Dom in Airwolf would lift off and provide air cover once he heard the code word "Black".

"Got it, String. Let's go get our girl." Dom settled the helmet firmly on his head and set his jaw.


	5. Chapter 5

**Who is it? **

These characters are not mine – I have just borrowed them! They are the property of Bellisario or Universal or whoever…

Chapter 5

String pulled his silver gun from his holster. Peering round the boulder that he was using for cover, he looked to see if any guards had been posted at the mouth of the abandoned mine. Deciding that the best way in would be through a back entrance, he warily stepped out from behind his boulder and went looking.

Minutes later, String skidded to a stop behind yet another boulder, this time about twelve paces from the back entrance of the mine. It was quiet and he couldn't see anything untoward. Pulling the tiny radio receiver from his belt, he whispered into it. "Black."

As he gripped his pistol tighter and counted to twenty, he heard the sound of gunfire coming from the direction of the mine entrance. Moments later, he heard the characteristic whine of Airwolf over the gunshots. "_Time to go, hotshot_."

Picking his way carefully and keeping both his eyes and ears open, String ran as quickly as he could through the mine. Through preliminary scans they had made from Airwolf, he had a reasonably good idea of the layout of the tunnels in the mine…for about fifty feet. The Airwolf scanners had drawn a blank after that. Both String and Dom figured that the combination of the radiation as well as the rare mineral were playing havoc with the scanners.

Aware that Caitlin had been kidnapped and probably in water for the past eight hours or so, String tried to hurry. The rocky, sandy floor underfoot was of no help. Slipping and sliding, he tried to move quickly but quietly. The next thing he knew, lights blinded his eyes and a voice shouted "Stop right there!"

"_Dammit!"_ was his last thought as the barrel of a gun clipped down the back of his neck, rendering him unconscious.

"String? String!?" squawked the radio.


	6. Chapter 6

**Who is it? **

These characters are not mine – I have just borrowed them! They are the property of Bellisario or Universal or whoever…

**Chapter 6**

String blinked twice in the darkness. His head throbbed where the gun barrel had hit him. He was sitting on the rocky, sandy floor and his hands were manacled. Tugging experimentally at his bonds, he soon discovered that the manacles were chained to a rusted metal loop set deep in the floor. His legs were free, but the radio was gone and so was his gun. He shivered. If he was cold, he could only imagine how much colder Caitlin was, if she was in water somewhere in the bowels of the mine. He took a few deep breaths to focus his mind, and settled in to plan how he was going to get himself out of this mess. As he shifted, a flashlight shone in his face. "Don't even think about it, mister. I'm watching you!" said his guard, brandishing his gun in his face.

Michael hefted the gun in his hand. Hiding behind any rocky outcrops he could find, he tried to make himself as small as possible as he worked his way through the tunnel leading from the mine entrance. He had absolutely no idea what the layout of the mine was, or how far or even where this tunnel lead. All he could hope for was that eventually it would lead him to Caitlin and String.

"_Darnit. Which fork do I take_?" Quickly deciding, he made his way carefully down the tunnel leading away to the right. As he walked, he could see a faint light up ahead. Slipping the safety off his gun, he took a deep breath and carried on as quietly as he could.

Stopping at the entrance of what seemed to be a cavern of sorts, he hid in the shadows of a convenient rocky shelf by the door. The big cannon-like object caught his attention first. It was bigger than the mounted chain guns on Airwolf, but looked like it was designed to be mounted on something. It had a huge chamber at the one end, but nothing resembling ammunition holders or loaders or anything like that. "_That's odd for a gun that big. Unless…it's meant to take some other form of ammunition? Maybe that big chamber is a nuclear reactor or something like that….and that's the radiation we picked up on the scan, I'll bet_!"

Looking around more carefully, he was sure there were no other entrances or exits to the cavern. "_Ok, so Caitlin isn't here. Neither is String. I guess it was the other tunnel_."

Turning around, Michael headed towards the fork in the tunnel, hoping that he wasn't too late to help Caitlin or String.

Caitlin shivered. The cool water came up to just under her armpits. She had no idea of how long she had been sitting there in the darkness. She felt so helpless. With her hands tied behind the back of her chair she could barely move. The seat of the chair was hard and all her squirming around in a wet dressing gown for hours on end hadn't helped. All she could do was sit and wait for someone to rescue her.

String surreptitiously tried to dig the loop out of the floor. It wasn't easy trying to do it quietly as the chains clinked at every move he made. He could hear the guard snoring softly. Ever conscious that the minutes were ticking away for Caitlin, he tried to work as fast as he could.

Michael came to a further fork in the tunnel. Trying his luck again, he went right, and almost immediately heard the snores of the sleeping guard. Lifting his gun above his head, he tried to aim for the paralysing blow to the back of the neck. The snores stopped abruptly. "String?" whispered Michael in the darkness.

"Over here. I'm fine, but don't worry about me. I'm handcuffed and chained to this blessed loop in the ground. Go get Caitlin!"

Michael turned and ran as quickly as he could to the other tunnel. He could see lights and hear voices further down the tunnel, but immediately to his left he saw a metal door. Putting his ear to the door he could hear water flowing. "_This must be where Caitlin is_!" Feeling around in the darkness, he could feel a simple latch, no keyhole or handle. "OK, here goes!" said Michael to himself. He battled to get the latch open quietly – between the pressure of the water behind the door and the rust on the latch it was no easy task. Suddenly, the door fell open with a gush of water. Michael rushed in and fumbled around in the darkness to get Caitlin to her feet. He finally succeeded in pulling her to her feet and lifting her tied hands off from behind the chair. Grabbing her hand, he whispered to her "Run as quick as you can!" He could hear the shouts of the men in the next room as they saw the water gushing into the room they were in. Michael prayed that he could outrun the men – his leg was starting to burn with pain.


	7. Chapter 7

**Who is it? **

These characters are not mine – I have just borrowed them! They are the property of Bellisario or Universal or whoever…

**Chapter 7 **

Michael and Caitlin burst out into the sunshine, Caitlin dragging Michael by the hand. She drags him behind the nearest convenient stand of bushes and starts groping for his gun. "No, Cait. You head up that hill – behind it you'll see Dom and Airwolf. Get them back here and blast a hole through that mine so we can get to String." gasped Michael. "I'll be fine here…besides I'll only slow you down."

Taking a good, swift look at his white, perspiring face, Caitlin quickly stripped off her soaking wet dressing gown. "The cold might help your leg," she said, wrapping it round his bad leg. To Michael's surprise, she then did something he did not expect. She wrapped her arms round his neck, pulled him close and kissed him deeply on the lips. "I'd love to take this further, Michael, but right now we got to get String out of there."

Michael couldn't answer. He nodded and gripped his pistol, facing grimly towards the entrance of the mine, where men were pouring out like ants out of an anthill. "Go, I'll try and buy you some time," was all he said while unclicking the safety and taking a few well-aimed shots at the first few men. Caitlin fled.

Dom blinked his eyes. A tousle-headed redhead was running towards him, dressed in sopping wet pink pajamas. "Cait?" he yelled, while hitting the start buttons for the engines.

Moments later Caitlin yanks the pilot door open. "Dom? You have no idea how happy I am to see you. We gotta go get String and Michael. Give me chain guns and Mavericks as soon as you can."

"Cait…nice haircut."

"Let's go Dom…we'll catch up later." Caitlin jammed her helmet on and pulled back on the collective, taking Airwolf up into the air. Dom chuckled quietly to himself. It was a relief to have Caitlin back, but had she any idea what she looked like with pink pajamas on flying Airwolf?

"OK, Dom, Michael's pinned down behind that stand of bushes, let's help him out. Chain guns ready?"

"Ready when you are!"

Cait depressed the trigger with her forefinger. A satisfying burst of bullets rang out. The men firing at Michael were enveloped in a cloud of dust and smoke, but she was relieved to see that no answering flashes of muzzle fire could be seen. Taking another look to satisfy herself that Michael was in no further danger, she then turned Airwolf towards the mine. Making minor corrections, she took a deep breath before pressing the button to launch two Maverick missiles into the wall where she THOUGHT String was being held. As the missiles went off with a big bang, Dom moved towards the door with his gun drawn. Cait hovered as close to the ground as possible and Dom jumped out, quickly slamming the door. She wondered how long it would take Dom to get String out and into Airwolf. Then they could pick up Michael and get out of this hellhole. She really needed a change of clothes – and she was really conscious of what String might say when he found his seat soaking wet, and her dressed in pink pajamas.

"String?" Dom could hear his voice echoing through the cave. No longer dark, the hole that the Mavericks blasted in the mine let light in. Enough for him to see that fine dust, and in some places, bigger rocks, were starting to fall from the ceiling. "_Not a good sign_," he thought to himself.

He could hear footsteps ahead of him, with the clink of chains. "That you, Dom? I could use a hand here."

Quickening his steps, Dom hurried towards String's voice. Catching up with him, he asked "So where you going and what the heck is this stuff?"

"Found it while digging around trying to free myself. Looks like old-fashioned sticks of dynamite. I wanna make sure that radiation gun superweapon thing that the men were talking about never sees the light of day. And if I can get hold of John Bradford Horn and shove some of this up his behind that would be a bonus!"

Dom took some of the dynamite out of String's hands and followed his friend down the tunnel.

Caitlin tried to get the infrared scanner working. She could see activity round the back side of the mine but wasn't sure how many men there were, or who were targets and which ones were Dom and String. It wasn't easy, considering that the buttons all looked different from the ones on the Engineering Console. Biting her lip, she keyed in the sequence that she THOUGHT would bring the scanners up. With a bleep, the infrared images came up on the tiny screen. With a silent hurrah, she took a quick look at the images. The six men who had pinned Michael down in the bushes were all blue and presumably, dead. "_Good shooting, Caity girl_," she thought to herself. Michael was still in the bushes, but was slowly making his way towards the back entrance of the mine where the activity was. There were three red figures in one section of the mine, and approximately twelve other red figures moving in and out of the back entrance. Nothing was happening at the entrance of the mine. Cait moved Airwolf to the back entrance and pressed the triggers again.

Checking her infrared scanners, she made out ten blue figures and two red ones heading for the hills. "_Well, those were the least of my worries_," she thought. Having a quick look at the image on her scope, she saw that one red figure was down on the ground, and the other two were heading for the back entrance. Quickly deciding that that was Dom and String, Cait hovered close to the ground. Within seconds, Michael, String and Dom pulled themselves into the helicopter.

"Hi guys, nice of you to drop in!"

All of them looked at Caitlin. String arched his eyebrow as he took in what she was wearing. "I like the new look, Cait, maybe you can model it for me later?" said String, his voice shaking with suppressed laughter. "Or for me, perhaps," said Michael from the jump seat.

Dom shook his head and said "Cait, let's just blow this place and go home. That gun in there really shouldn't get into enemy hands."

String grabbed the co-pilot's controls and said, "No, allow me." Pressing the trigger for a Maverick, he grinned in satisfaction as the missile found its mark. And then watched in horror as a lone red figure on the infrared scope made it out through the back entrance of the mine as the infrared went completely red when the missile exploded.

"I'm wet, my hair is a mess and I'm cold. I'm taking all of you home, " said Caitlin.

"No arguments here. We missed out on a lot of sleep last night." said Dom, settling back in his chair.


	8. Chapter 8

**Who is it? **

These characters are not mine – I have just borrowed them! They are the property of Bellisario or Universal or whoever…

**Epilogue **

Caitlin felt a lot better. Granted two locks of hair shorn off at weird angles shouldn't have affected her hairstyle, but getting her hair done did make her feel more, well, human. Dom had given her yesterday off, so she finished her preparations for his big birthday dinner party for tonight. A huge roast was in the oven, with a vegetable lasagne for String. Cheese sauce bubbling on the stove, vegetables chopped and ready to be scalded in boiling water as her guests arrived. Cake standing under its cover on the counter, with candles laid out next to it, ice cream in the freezer. Table was laid with a pretty tablecloth and her best china and cutlery. Candles and flowers, tasteful and appropriate, were placed at appropriate intervals in the centre of the table. Dom's present, prettily wrapped, was on his place setting, at the head of the table. "_All set_," thought Cait to herself.

"_Ding dong_!"

"Who is it?"

"It's Michael. Can I come in?"

Taking a quick look in the mirror, Cait hesitated for one moment with her hand on the door handle. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door.

"Hi…"

"Come in, Michael. Make yourself comfortable. You ARE early but always welcome. It's so nice to see you."

"Cait, I came early so that I could talk to you alone. About the other day…"

Taking another deep breath, Cait reached out with her right hand to take Michael's left hand. She took a step closer to him and looked into his blue eye. "Michael, I knew you would never make the first move, so I thought I might. Was that too forward of me?"

Michael's response was to put his other arm round her waist and draw her close. "No, not at all. I never thought I was your type, though. And I'd never thought you'd feel this way about me. Not that I'm not enjoying it. I like you a lot, Cait, and the only thing that's holding me back is the thought that I might be too old, too broken, too hard-nosed for you…"

"Michael, why don't we take it slow, now we know how we feel about each other? Start with a date, and see how it goes from there? It's not as if I'm asking you to marry me or anything, y'know…"

Michael chuckled and agreed. "One thing I need to fix though Cait. Don't ever say I didn't kiss you back." His lips melted onto hers as her arms snaked round his neck.

"_Ding dong_!"

Pulling apart, they both chorused, "Who is it?"

THE END


End file.
